U.S. conducts another humanitarian airdrop in Iraq

WASHINGTON, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. military on Friday evening conducted another successful airdrop of food and water for thousands of Iraqi citizens threatened by Islamic State (IS) militants, the Pentagon said.

In the airdrop, conducted on Mount Sinjar from multiple airbases within the U.S. Central Command area, participating aircraft including one C-17 and two C-130 together dropped a total of 72 bundles of supplies, including ready-to-eat meals and drinking water, the department said in a news release.

The cargo aircraft were escorted by two F/A-18s from the USS George H.W. Bush, it added.

To date, in coordination with the Iraqi government, U.S. military aircraft have delivered 36,224 meals and 6,822 gallons of fresh drinking water, according to the news release.

The Pentagon said the U.S. military will continue to work with international partners to assess the need for additional humanitarian operations in Iraq.

U.S. President Barack Obama said Thursday evening that he has authorized targeted airstrikes against IS targets and airdrops of aid for besieged Iraqis.

Nine hours after Obama gave the green light, U.S. warplanes carried out two rounds of strikes against IS targets near the northern Iraqi city of Erbil.

The British defense ministry has also said its forces are to drop food aid for members of the Yazidi community and others under threat from IS militants in Iraq.